Adrian Sutil believes the puncture he picked up when he was hit by Robert Kubica cost him a potential fifth-place finish in the Canadian Grand Prix.
We missed out on a big chance. It was not our fault, but still we missed a big chance. I think position five or six was possible, certainly sixth behind Mark Webber. The pace was good, we knew that after qualifying, so it was a little bit disappointing. But we can be happy that both cars finished in the points.
Adrian Sutil
Sutil described his shock when Kubica drove around him at speed to get into the pits, clipped Sutil’s right-rear tyre as he went:
I was trying to pass him, but I didn’t know that he was going into the pits. He suddenly backed off. He was right behind me, and I thought, ‘Good I’ve gained a position.’ I was braking as normal before the chicane, and suddenly he came flying down the inside.
I thought he’d missed his braking point and was trying to get the position back. But then he pulled into the pits, and I was wondering, ‘What did he do?’. He touched me slightly on the rear right tyre, and I got a puncture. Within 200m the pressure dropped down, and under braking for the first corner I lost the car and went straight. That manoeuvre ended my race.
I was so unlucky, because I had to do the whole lap with a punctured tyre. I lost around 20 seconds, and it did huge damage to the floor. There was no real floor left on that side, to be honest! And then I just had to race as it was. I still did a good race, and could fight for positions. It was tough, but I got a point in the end.
Adrian Sutil
Kubica was handed a reprimand for the move after the race.
Sutil’s tyre came apart at the fastest point on the circuit on his way back to the pits and Kubica had to fight to keep his car under control as the tyre carcass separated from the wheel.
The television race director missed that moment (it was shown on the onboard camera feed) and only caught the end of Sutil’s last-lap pass on Michael Schumacher. Sutil described how he got past the Mercedes:
I passed him at the last corner. He was struggling on the tyres, which was really good for me. We were side-by-side on the straight, and I was just braking later for the last chicane, and passed him on the outside. So I got the last point out of it. I really worked hard for it, I had a hard race! You had to push all the time, try to defend your position, try to push for position, overtake people. In the end I got at least one point.
Adrian Sutil
Sutil added he also missed out on a chance to pass Kubica on the first lap, when team mate Vitantonio Liuzzi collided with Felipe Massa:
I had a great start from ninth and I was right next to Massa into the first corner. It was quite a mess there and he hit Tonio. They were really pinched together and I tried to go on the inside. I was past Kubica already, but I was quite affected by this incident and had to back off, so he got the position back.
Adiran Sutil
2010 Canadian Grand Prix
chaostheory
18th June 2010, 9:53
Heh, how unlucky for Sutil, if not Raikkonen, its Kubica :D
One thing is interesting in this: AS says he was braking “as normal”, Kubica said AS was braking “unusually early”. Doesnt it says about driving styles of these two drivers?
bosyber
18th June 2010, 12:42
Subjective views from both of them, one trying to make clear he was the victim, the other that he had no choice. I guess the Stewards had access to the data when they reprimanded Kubica.
Todfod
18th June 2010, 10:15
You got to feel sorry for Sutil, he seems to suffer from other people’s mistakes more than any other driver on the grid. Lets hope he gets a podium for FI this year though, without anyone shattering his dreams a few laps before the end.
Damon
18th June 2010, 11:18
“The television race director missed that moment”
– Huh? We have all seen it. I mean when Kubica passed Sutil going into the pits.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
18th June 2010, 11:56
That was referring to Sutil’s tyre falling apart, as described in the preceding paragraph. I wouldn’t be surprised if it appears on F1.com’s highlights reel when that becomes available as it was caught on the onboard feed.
Victor
18th June 2010, 17:08
It’s a typo Keith: “Sutil’s tyre came apart at the fastest point on the circuit on his way back to the pits and Kubica had to fight to keep his car under control as the tyre carcass separated from the wheel.”
damonsmedley
19th June 2010, 16:00
What a surprise FOM missed it… I was particularly upset with FOM’s coverage at this race. They missed so many opportunities to show what presumably would have been spectacular footage. This is the 21st century Bernie – why don’t all cars have at least on onboard camera to refer to???
TommyB (@tommyb89)
18th June 2010, 11:38
I still can’t believe Kubica got a warning for this. One of the most dangerous things I’ve seen in F1 for a while and he ruined someone else’s race whilst doing.
Easily the worst bit of driving all year, surely he deserves a proper penalty?
His warning just shows you can get away with anything this year as long as you don’t do it twice.
Scribe (@scribe)
18th June 2010, 15:08
Yeah it’s started to make me slightly nervous the way there going about it this year, something horrible will happen an there’ll likley be a massive jump the other way. Kubica should have got a decent sized grid drop next race at the least.
th_
18th June 2010, 16:11
So Hamilton should got multiple.
Oh and he (Kubica)touched him before that move.
That was when Adrian pushed his brakes early having Robert just behind.
So no, this move was not the reason of that puncture!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
18th June 2010, 23:59
The Kubica one is the first one this year that’s had me thinking perhaps the stewards have been a bit lenient.
On the other hand if Sutil did brake earlier than expected and caught Kubica out then instead we should be saying Kubica did well to avoid hitting him.
Michael Griffin
18th June 2010, 14:33
When I saw Kubica only got a reprimand for that I literally choked on my tea. I’ve never been so stunned with one decision, ever.
What is it with Sutil? The poor chap just seems to be a magnet for idiots, or at the very least a magnet for catastrophe. He loses fourth in Monaco because Kimi braked on a wet patch in, loses fifth at the Nurburgring because Kimi clipped him, loses a chance at sixth at the very least because Kubica drove like a complete loon.
Give him a break!
Seen as we’re on the subject of Force India, sort of, Luizzi and Massa crashing-addiction at turn one/two was one of the funniest things I’ve seen all year. That literally kicked the stuffing out of each-other!
wasiF1
19th June 2010, 2:33
It was a tough race for the drivers. many expected them to finish better then they did. But in the end unlucky for both the drivers especially for Sutil as his puncture happened on the wrong place of the track.
koper
20th June 2010, 22:25
well, if you watch the footage once again you’ll notice that kubica backed off to line up behind Sutil. I think that should Kubica had planned to go to the pits the way he eventually went he wouldn’t have backed off while being on the side of Sutil, so maybe Kubica was just avoiding an accident and not making a dangerous move…